pursue your dreams: janee of yellow bird + yellow beard

Pursue Your Dreams is a weekly mini-series brought to you by a handful of talented handmade artists, bloggers, small business owners, and ladies who are chasing hard after their dreams. The series focuses on 3 insights they've learned about staying inspired, dealing with negativity, business tips, blogging, setting goals, marketing yourself, and more!

Hey, Beautiful People! I'm Janee, owner and creative director of

Yellow Bird + Yellow Beard

. I started blogging and opened my shop over three years ago in January of 2011. It's been quite a journey and I've learned so much along the way. I'm extremely thankful and honored to be featured here with so many other talented and inspiring ladies. I hope to have something of value to contribute to your journey as well!

1 // Nobody said it was easy, No one ever said it would be this hard

When I started my business I had no idea what I was getting myself into. I needed a creative outlet and my blog/shop stemmed very naturally from there. I had no previous experience in blogging or marketing {other than working retail for many years}. I have always been very crafty, but selling the things you make as a full-time business is much different than having a project or two you enjoy working on occasionally. Running a business, blog or shop or both, is extremely difficult and time consuming. To say otherwise would be lying. I'm not going to tell you it's easy because it's not. However, I'm not saying this to scare or discourage you. I think if I'd known how difficult it was going to be from the start, I would have been more prepared. Don't think that things are going to always happen quickly and easily, remember that every step of the way is going to take hard work and dedication. And be inspired by the successful ladies you look up to. If they can do it, so can you!

2 // Be Patient

Some aspects of blogging and running a shop happened very quickly and felt very natural to me. Other times I felt completely overwhelmed with the frustration of wanting to have more orders or more followers, etc. faster. I've had more than a couple break-down, freak-out moments desperately wanting things to happen more quickly. But I would strongly recommend all of you to stay away from that mentality as much as possible. It only leads to discouragement and self deprecation. You are your own person, you operate at your own rate and that's going to be different for you than it is for everyone else around you. Regardless of it being faster or slower than the people you inevitably compare yourself to and regardless of if you're progressing as quickly as you'd like to - be patient. Be patient with yourself. Don't make things any harder for yourself by focusing on what you see as faults. Instead focus on the great strides you have already made. Think of your accomplishments and focus your energy on taking the next step.

3 // Go For It

I firmly believe in taking risks. It's not always prudent but I'm definitely a leap before you look personality. I wholeheartedly believe that in order to succeed you have to take big risks. Sometimes financially, sometimes emotionally. There are so many ways that you will have to put yourself out there and take the chance of complete failure. But in my opinion, if you are pursuing your dreams and doing what you love, the risk is worth the cost. I would rather be poor or fail miserably trying to do something I love than be rich or successful doing something I hated. 20 years from now when I look back on my life so far I want to feel confident that I've been doing everything I can to pursue my dreams. I refuse to hide behind fears, excuses and insecurities. Don't let anything ever hold you back. No matter what anyone else says or does in response to you - go for it. Run, don't walk, in pursuit of your dreams. You'll be continually surprised at the joy and satisfaction you find in doing so.

Thanks so much, Jenny, for inviting me to be part of this encouraging and inspiring series! I hope you all have a wonderful day and will come visit me sometime!